PHILADELPHIA – George Jabboure Netto, MD, an internationally recognized physician-scientist specializing in genitourinary pathology and molecular genetic pathology, has been named chair of the department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Penn Medicine, effective Aug. 1, 2023. Netto will join the Perelman School of Medicine from his role as professor and the Robert and Ruth Anderson Endowed Chair of Pathology at The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Heersink School of Medicine.
Netto's research has contributed significantly to the understanding of the molecular basis of prostate and bladder cancers, and he has held many national and institutional leadership roles throughout his career. During his seven-year tenure at UAB, the basic and translational research portfolio in the Pathology department at UAB experienced its largest expansion.
“Dr. Netto is a distinguished physician-scientist with a track record of successfully leading and growing a major academic medicine department,” said J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD, dean of the Perelman School of Medicine and executive vice president of the University of Pennsylvania for the Health System. “He brings a focus on disruptive technologies in precision medicine that will help push the frontiers of pathology and laboratory medicine at Penn Medicine and ultimately benefit patients.”
Under his leadership, the Pathology department at UAB developed and implemented a shared strategic vision with a focus on enhancing the quality-of-care delivery and patient safety, talent acquisition, team integration, and diversity.
In addition to his research and institutional leadership roles, Netto is also editor in chief of the journal Modern Pathology and serves as an expert co-editor of the 5th edition of the World Health Organization (WHO) Blue Book on the Classifications of Urinary and Male Genital Tumors. He is the associate editor for Advances in Anatomic and Molecular Pathology and has authored or co-authored more than 400 articles and chapters, including six books in urologic pathology.
“Pathology and Laboratory Medicine has a storied history at Penn Medicine, and we look forward to the department further growing as one of the preeminent research groups in the country, under Dr. Netto’s leadership,” said Kevin B. Mahoney, CEO of the University of Pennsylvania Health System. “His vast experience in leading dynamic and diverse teams will position the department for success in academic impact, research innovation and national reputation.”
Netto succeeds David B. Roth, MD, PhD, the Simon Flexner Professor and Chair Emeritus of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and Kathleen T. Montone, MD, who has provided strong and capable stewardship of the department as interim chair.
Netto received his medical degree from Damascus University, before residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at Baylor University Medical Center and fellowships in surgical pathology at the Washington University School of Medicine, and in urologic pathology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. He joined the faculty at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in 2005 and was recruited to UAB in 2016.
Penn Medicine is one of the world’s leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, excellence in patient care, and community service. The organization consists of the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Penn’s Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine, founded in 1765 as the nation’s first medical school.
The Perelman School of Medicine is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $550 million awarded in the 2022 fiscal year. Home to a proud history of “firsts” in medicine, Penn Medicine teams have pioneered discoveries and innovations that have shaped modern medicine, including recent breakthroughs such as CAR T cell therapy for cancer and the mRNA technology used in COVID-19 vaccines.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System’s patient care facilities stretch from the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania to the New Jersey shore. These include the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, Chester County Hospital, Lancaster General Health, Penn Medicine Princeton Health, and Pennsylvania Hospital—the nation’s first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional facilities and enterprises include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, Penn Medicine at Home, Lancaster Behavioral Health Hospital, and Princeton House Behavioral Health, among others.
Penn Medicine is an $11.1 billion enterprise powered by more than 49,000 talented faculty and staff.